From offshore wind, to oil and gas, the energy industry is key to Scotland's economy, providing energy security, creating jobs, and supporting communities. With the oil and gas sector waning and jobs in clean energy on the rise, what is your plan to ensure Scotland’s economy benefits from the energy transition?
Russell Findlay: On the first question, Scotland’s energy industry is world-leading, providing energy security for the whole of the UK and supporting thousands of jobs. We must continue to support our vital oil and gas sector as we will rely on it for decades to come. I believe it’s better to get that energy from here at home rather than importing it from abroad at greater cost and with a far higher carbon footprint. Our future energy system should be comprised of a mixture of sources – nuclear, offshore wind, solar, tidal, oil and gas and more. Sadly, we could be doing a lot more if it wasn’t for the Scottish Government’s dogmatic and ideological opposition to new nuclear energy. Many workers with the key skills needed to advance the energy transition are already employed in the North Sea sector and I want to make sure that knowledge and expertise is retained and valued as we move to net zero. That’s why we need to manage the transition carefully rather than taking the reckless action that Labour and the SNP are proposing. I also believe we must continue to progress the carbon capture and storage cluster in Aberdeenshire and invest in a Green Industries Growth Accelerator.
Murdo Fraser: The energy transition is a huge opportunity for Scotland, but too often the benefits have gone elsewhere. We need to change that. For starters, let’s maximise the value of our oil & gas sector as it winds down. Better to use our own resources, extracted to a high environmental standard, than shipping imports across the planet. As we do that, let’s create a circular economy for redundant oil & gas equipment by repurposing it into other sectors, such as construction, and let’s make it as easier for the workers to take their qualifications to new jobs. In turn, this helps us drive our clean energy sector forward. Strengthening supply chains to attract investors and create local jobs, investing in R&D to commercialise new technologies and develop expertise and using renewable energy bonds to allow communities and individuals to share in this new wealth.
Meghan Gallacher: It is vital that we tackle the climate emergency and reach net zero emissions by 2045.
In order to meet this ambition it is vital that the transition to renewable energy is reached in a sensible and measured way. It is vital that we avoid taking drastic measures to cut off domestic oil and gas supplies as this will lead to increased pollution, create dependency and foreign imports endangering our energy security and most importantly will put 100,000 jobs at risk, especially in the North-east of Scotland.
We must recognise the importance of the oil and gas sector as a major employer, and just turning our back on this sector right now would cause significant economic harm as has been demonstrated by this new Labour Government which is already having disastrous effects. Figures from OEUK show that the effect of the Labour Government's Windfall Tax by 2029 will risk 35,000 jobs, reduce the economic value of the sector by £13 billion, reduce capital investment from £14.1 billion to £2.3 billion and lead to reduced tax receipts in the long term.
However, it is clear that we need to transition away from non-renewable energy sources eventually, therefore as leader, I would ensure that this transition will coincide with a jobs-led energy revolution centred in the north-east of Scotland to ensure that communities reliant on the Oil and Gas Sector are not abandoned. Just as Scotland was the Oil and Gas capital of Europe I believe we can become the clean energy capital of Europe to do this I will work with businesses to enable them to invest in clean energy technology in Scotland so we can lead the way in the UK and Europe.
To achieve a jobs-led energy revolution we must turbocharge the college and apprenticeships sector. I would there ensure funding for colleges and apprenticeships receives parity with university education to enable more opportunities for young people to enter this vital sector and to finally put colleges and apprenticeships on a equal footing with universities. We must also support anyone in the oil and gas sector transition to jobs in clean energy by supporting them to receive training and opportunities where needed.
From commercial forestry, to fishing, to nature restoration, to farming, to eco tourism, Scotland's natural environment plays a vital role in powering the rural economy, producing food, and tackling climate change and biodiversity loss. What is your conservative vision and policy agenda for Scotland’s land and sea?
Russell Findlay: On your second point about Scotland’s natural environment, I am committed to supporting farming and fishing. We must boost Scotland's food security by following a common-sense approach that recognises that rural and coastal communities know best how to manage the natural environment. Unfortunately, the left-wing consensus at Holyrood has made the lives of businesses and workers in agriculture and fishing communities harder. We must review how our land is used in Scotland with a view to seeing how we can best use it to boost our food security. I believe Labour must inflation-proof funding for farmers in Scotland throughout the lifetime of the next UK Parliament and the SNP Government must give more detail when it comes to how farmers can expect to receive their funding in the long-term.
Murdo Fraser: Scotland is blessed with an incredible natural environment. But it’s badly depleted and we have to reverse that if we want a sustainable landscape that can support us and generations to come. Restoring our biodiversity is critical to that and must be at the heart of everything we do - whether it’s planting forests, creating new urban greenspaces or ensuring we have robust data to inform policy. We need the right people though - we have already seen peatland restoration efforts off-track thanks to skills shortages. We must also back our food producers and land managers who are on the frontline of caring for our environment. Targeted technical and financial support would let them upgrade to greener equipment, deliver their produce more sustainably, improve biodiversity and nature restoration.
Meghan Gallacher: I absolutely agree that Scotland’s natural environment plays a vital role in powering the rural economy, producing food and tackling climate change and biodiversity loss. Under the SNP Government, we have witnessed a rural economy ignored and a declining biodiversity. If leader, I will reach out to industry and stakeholders to harness their expertise so that we have an industry-backed expert strategy to revitalise our rural economy to provide vital food security, reverse biodiversity loss and progress on meeting climate change targets.
Views expressed in this blog are those of the author, not necessarily those of the Conservative Environment Network. If you are a CEN supporter, councillor, or parliamentarian and would like to write for the CEN blog, please email your idea to info@cen.uk.com
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